Wet Houses and Alcohol Recovery

The death at New Year of a “wet house” resident in Alaska has sparked continued debate as to the efficacy, and the value of providing serviced, low cost accommodation for long term alcoholics.

The alcoholic was 54 years old, and had lived on the streets of Anchorage for around 10 years of the 20 years that he had been homeless, dying within a month of the locally controversial opening of a “wet house” in the former Red Roof Inn, now known as Karluk Manor.

It is easy to forget when someone has been an alcoholic, for many years, that there was a time, before alcohol entered their life, a family, a story – a real person behind the label – homeless alcoholic. John Kort was intelligent, had been to university, had worked and had relationship with other people – a family that loved him.

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The Karluk initiative is based on the model of project accommodation in Seattle for chronic alcoholics.

The Seattle project, Eastlake, provides supported accommodation for homeless alcoholics. Public goodwill has begun to ease with a finding that many alcoholics using the Eastlake facility also abuse emergency services in the area – an estimated cost to the local community being $500,000 for five alcoholics over a two year period – over a $130,000 in ambulance bills and emergency care – over $335,000 for repeated entry into the Seattle Detoxification Center.

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The Eastlake site, in Seattle, that houses around 75 homeless alcoholics is looking to re-accommodate some people in other facilities, so that alcoholics who only need to sober up, are not placed, at great public expense in medically supervised premises.

The situation underlines the fundamental controversy about providing accommodation to alcoholics where they are allowed to drink – with no obligation to attend any form of rehab. Does the service actually benefit alcoholics, or simply become irresponsible and enabling behavior.

No one doubts that it is humane to provide warmth, and food and shelter for those people who have become homeless, who cannot do better for themselves. However, the question remains as to whether it is appropriate to maintain this continued support without at least directing the alcoholics to rehab, or at some point, requiring as a condition of support that they attempt to remain sober.

Unfortunately the underlying principal behind well intentioned wet houses is that alcoholism is untreatable, that people not able or willing to enter a 12 step program can only be expected to eventually drink themselves to death - wet houses simply provide them with a measure of safety and dignity as they approach the end of their life.

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What is not made clear, when dealing with the issue of wet houses is that for the majority of residents, they have previously been in detox and rehab facilities – and have failed to achieve recovery.

Wet houses are really the visible sign that traditional methods for alcoholism recovery don’t work – the best that is achieved is the sobriety of 12 step programs under which every day is a challenge to avoid renewed temptation to drink.

Putting alcoholics into wet houses is thought by some to be humane – others see it as an avoidance of further responsibility for outcomes for the alcoholic. Alcoholics given an allowance are free to spend it as they wish – most spend it all on alcohol – and to some extent it is a question of what is real help, and what is enabling behavior.

Although 12 step programs do not provide the same level of intensive support, that you will find in a comprehensive center, they at least follow the same essential principle of all addiction recovery which is that a person must first give up their substance abuse before real recovery can be enabled.

Perhaps it is time for families of alcoholics, and for alcoholics themselves to consider the use of comprehensive alcohol addiction recovery centers – not a wet house, nor a 12 step program, comprehensive alcohol recovery programs provide complete detoxification in an environment that is supportive of complete addiction recovery.

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Alcohol is used compulsively by some individuals to deal with feelings of inadequacy, and emotional pain. Other people might might use other substances or process to satisfy their compulsive need to get away from their pain, but for all people who suffer from addiction, the underlying dynamics are the same.

Comprehensive alcohol recovery centers understand the real nature of addiction, and have a social model, based on scientific principles that gets people to resolve their reasons for addiction – and once the causes are resolved – there is simply no more addiction, or need for any kind of alcohol drinking or substance abuse.

People responsible for the care and control of alcoholics need to consider, on their behalf, programs that enable complete alcoholism recovery. Family members and public authorities who want to see an end to chronic alcoholism need to give serious consideration to using a comprehensive program so as to bring about real change – and a reduction of alcoholism in the year 2012.